Nghe An international students share about life during the days of fighting Covid-19 pandemic

Nghe An Newspaper had a conversation with two Nghe An students from two different backgrounds, to better understand their lives these days.

Everyone must be aware of protecting themselves and the community.

PV: Hello Ngo Anh Binh! You are in the Federal Republic of Germany - the country with the 4th highest number of infections in the world with more than 100,000 people testing positive for nCoV. So, your life and everyone's life must have many changes?

Ngo Anh Binh:Germany is currently in a state of social distancing, with gatherings of more than two people banned and shops and entertainment services closed, making the situation quite tense. At this time, schools and universities are temporarily closed and working people with young children are allowed to stay home and work from home.

Rostock City - Federal Republic of Germany is quiet during the days of quarantine. Photo: NVCC

The research institute where I study still has to go to work but everyone always keeps a distance of 2 meters. Although the number of infected people in Germany has reached more than 100,000, I see that people are not too panicked and people still exercise every day, some people still do not wear masks. The supermarket is still full of food but everyone is aware of keeping a distance and the cashier counter has a glass shield to ensure everyone's safety.

I myself had a cough 10 days ago so I asked to stay home from work for 14 days. Now I am normal and about to go back to work. When I first got sick, I was a bit worried but my symptoms were similar to the common cold because I only had a mild cough, no fever and it could have been due to being out in the cold and not keeping warm. However, for the sake of public safety, I and everyone consciously self-quarantined.

Ngo Anh Binh - PhD student in the Federal Republic of Germany. Photo: NVCC

Ngo Anh Binh is a former student majoring in Chemistry at Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted, and a former student of Hanoi University of Science and Technology. After graduating with honors from university, Binh received a full scholarship to do research at the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis Research - University of Rostock, Rostock, Federal Republic of Germany.

PV: On your personal page, you once shared an article “Should I return to Vietnam to avoid the epidemic” and had a fairly thorough analysis of the epidemic situation around the world. You yourself also wrote that “I should not return”. Could you share more about your decision?

Ngo Anh Binh: Recently, my parents have been very worried and many people have asked me why I haven't returned home. However, I have never thought about returning to Vietnam to avoid the epidemic because the process of moving, using the toilet... will make it very easy to get infected and in that situation, I think it will be safer to implement good measures in place. Besides, my job does not allow it because everyone in the hospital goes to work, except for those with small children who work from home. Of course, the number of people returning to Vietnam is still large because it depends on each person's circumstances because there are many self-funded international students studying at university and universities are closed. Or there are also students who are concerned about medical conditions and the ability to adapt to the environment...

PV: So is your life actually disrupted by the Covid-19 epidemic?

Ngo Anh Binh: Due to the impact of the epidemic, we do not have meetings with friends on the weekends and everyone just stays at home. During this time, some scientific conferences I planned to attend were also canceled.

Streets and shopping centers are deserted. Photo: NVCC

In fact, during the 14 days I self-quarantined at home, the first 1-2 days I felt free and comfortable, and the next 3-4 days I felt a bit stuffy. But now everything has returned to normal and I took advantage of this time to read documents and write articles because normally a PhD student's time is quite limited. I also regularly follow and update information about the Covid-19 epidemic in Vietnam. There will still be many difficulties, but I believe that the spirit of solidarity for the community will be the strength for us to overcome the pandemic.

Country for everyone, everyone join hands for the country

PV: Khanh Huyen was one of the last international students to leave Russia before the order to stop flights to Vietnam. Why did you decide to return to Vietnam at such an urgent time?

Khanh Huyen: Due to the increasingly complicated epidemic, my roommate and I decided to stay in Russia from the beginning. But on March 24, on the school's official YouTube channel, there was an announcement that students could study online and foreign students were allowed to return to their home countries to study remotely, so I decided to buy a ticket to return to Vietnam because my vacation would last until September.

At the time of buying the ticket, I did not know that this would be the last flight to return to Vietnam and indeed, from the time of buying the ticket until boarding the plane, we were very worried because the flight schedule was changed frequently and we heard many times that the flight would be canceled. Luckily, despite the difficulties, the last passengers on this flight received timely intervention from the Vietnamese Government, creating conditions for the plane to land at Noi Bai even though the airport was overloaded at that time.

Checking body temperature of people in quarantine at the Vinh Phuc Field Hospital Quarantine Area. Photo courtesy

Truong Thi Khanh Huyen is a former student majoring in Russian at Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted. In 2019, at the Russian Language Olympiad held in the Russian Federation, Khanh Huyen won first prize in Russian essay writing. Currently, Khanh Huyen is studying Economics at the Russian National Social University under a scholarship agreement between Russia and Vietnam.

PV:So before that, when many Vietnamese students returned home, were you worried? You are currently quarantined with everyone at the Vinh Phuc Field Hospital. How has life been these past few days?

Khanh Huyen: Of course, when returning to Vietnam, everyone wants to return to their families immediately and I also hope that the 14 days in quarantine will pass quickly, everyone will be healthy so they can return to their families soon.

In the first days, everyone was worried because the epidemic was spreading, but now at the Vinh Phuc Provincial Field Hospital, I see that everyone is quite conscious of self-isolating to protect themselves and the community. As a citizen of Vietnam, I am also doing my duty to protect myself and everyone in the quarantine area.

When we first arrived at the quarantine area, we all had our information taken and our temperatures measured to ensure that we had no symptoms. Here, everyone was given all the necessities such as towels, toothbrushes, toothpaste, laundry detergent, shampoo, soap, and toilet paper when they first entered the quarantine area. Each room had a bottle of hand sanitizer. Twice a day, military doctors came to the room to take our temperature and distribute masks. Everyone was also advised to stay in their rooms, limit movement and avoid gathering in large groups.

PV: Compared to many other countries, our country still faces many difficulties. However, the Government's efforts to bring Vietnamese people abroad back and create all conditions for people to be safely quarantined are receiving the sympathy of the people of the whole country. Having traveled far and returned, how do you feel about the love of the country?

Khanh Huyen: When I learned that I could return to Vietnam and would be quarantined, I felt extremely grateful to my homeland. I believe that not only me but all those who return from far away will feel very warm, because in difficult times the country is always ready to welcome us with open arms. In response, my friends and I will try our best to quarantine well, joining hands with the whole population to fight the epidemic.

Before returning home, I read some articles online and saw a complaint about the quarantine area. However, when I arrived for quarantine, I found everything very good. Everyone here is provided with all the necessary supplies and 3 nutritious meals a day. Moreover, the soldiers here care a lot about everyone. They are always enthusiastic, always asking if we lack anything, asking if we miss home a lot, if we want to go home yet and encouraging us to try to quarantine well. Sometimes we are sponsored with milk or instant noodles.

The first day we arrived, we were not prepared so we had to take cold showers. But a few days later, when the weather got colder, there was a soldier who boiled water for everyone. Receiving this care, we not only felt warm physically but also warmed in the hearts.

PV: Many localities in Vietnam are confused about online teaching and testing. How is online teaching being implemented in your school and can you share your experience of effective online learning?

Khanh Huyen: Because up to now, my school has had a system for teachers to assign homework and students to submit homework online, so the epidemic has not affected students' learning much. The only difference during the epidemic is that instead of going to school, students will study online with their teachers through applications. The homework is always posted by teachers on the system for students to download and complete.

Khanh Huyen studies online during quarantine. Photo: NVCC

Of course, online teaching is a bit inconvenient because it is difficult for students and teachers to discuss directly, but in general, there is not much change. If students study and do their homework seriously, the results are still not much different.

PV: Along with the whole country, Nghe An people are actively participating in the prevention and fight against the Covid-19 epidemic. Being far away from home, how do you see the implementation in your hometown?

Khanh Huyen:Through the media, I know that since the epidemic spread, Nghe An has allowed students to stay home from school to quarantine and implement online teaching programs. Compared to many other localities in the country, Nghe An took action very early and contributed to preventing the epidemic. In particular, after discovering the source of the epidemic at Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi, Nghe An organized quarantine in hamlets where people had contact with people in the outbreak area. Personally, I think Nghe An is currently doing quite well in preventing and fighting the epidemic and I feel secure when my relatives and everyone are protected safely in my hometown.

Ngo Anh Binh:Every day I follow the epidemic in Vietnam and go to online forums to update information in my home province. I am really touched when I see grandmothers, mothers, and aunts, despite many difficulties, are still willing to support a lot of food for quarantine areas and disease prevention and control work. This may be very different from foreign countries because they consider it the government's job, but I am proud of it because the spirit of solidarity and mutual love is a very valuable cultural beauty of Vietnamese people in general and Nghe An people in particular.

PV: Thank you both!